


A Boy and The Portrait

by DigDipper



Category: Iron Man - All Media Types
Genre: Character Study, Gen, this entire piece is one giant image
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-19
Updated: 2015-04-19
Packaged: 2018-03-24 19:46:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3782140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DigDipper/pseuds/DigDipper
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This image is what immediately comes to mind whenever Tony Stark's childhood is mentioned. A boy, surrounded by beautiful opulence and vague presence of people, except for the one constant that is Jarvis.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Boy and The Portrait

Sunlight shines brightly through wide, open windows into a lavishly decorated hallway. Chrystal chandeliers and glistening tiles make a pattern of the ocean onto the deep blue walls. Subtle wind kiss the thin curtains, leaving them shimmering like white sand on a beach. It’s a warm and sunny day, a day which carries picnics and sun hats, laughter and wild flowers. There are none here, in the room, but there are plenty outside, where the guests are mingling. But it is a faraway thought to the occupants of this room. This room is silent.

One man stands in the middle of the room, still as the statues that stand vigil with him, as he watches his charge. A little boy, dressed far too maturely for his age, stands like a soldier, chest proud and legs apart, looking up to the portrait of a family. The mother is beautiful, her eyes letting through a spark of wit that belies her stiff sitting posture. The slight twist of her mouth and the placement of her left hand upon her husband’s seem indicative of something, though of intimacy or possessiveness is not clear. She wears no jewellery, her ruby lips and errant dark curl at the nape of her neck is enough to entice anyone’s eyes. But she is not the subject of the young child’s contemplation. The boy’s gaze is fixed upon the husband’s eyes; firm, yet warm, under thick brown eyebrows and gazing well above the boy’s height and out the window. There is a small smile on the man’s face, mirroring the woman’s, though his seem to hold a different mystery than that of his wife. The boy does not puzzle the meaning behind the husband’s smile; for it is a lie. But he will wonder always where his father’s eyes are fixed, far out the window, over the city’s skyline, over the invisible horizon. The son is not a part of this family, not yet. There is no room for children for this couple — they are already perfect family, complete. The boy does not know if the picture is simply a memory cherished or a memento of past fulfilment. A gleeful shriek chirps faintly through the open windows, disturbing the curtains with the guests’ juvenile exuberance.

The son turns away from his parents and walks to the man, who is still waiting patiently and silently. He wears a smile, too. It is not held at the corner of his lips, but rather at the tilt of his eyes. They do not look past, or through, the boy; this love is entirely for the child in front of him. Clear sounds sparkle from the boy’s well-polished shoes as they softly tread the tiles. The soft, shy smile widens into laughter as the man bends down and sweeps the young boy off the ground, holding him close with a kiss to his brow. Sunlight shines its smile through the curtains that flutter silent applause at their little dance; the summer breeze carries away the noise of outside world; the man and boy are free to share their moment of friendship. This room is silent.

**Author's Note:**

> Although I do not doubt Tony has his angsty daddy feels at whatever age it had started, I think Tony's parents were just absent enough that Tony did not grow up being attached to them. Not just yet. I think of Tony's childhood like; since he's been born Jarvis has been taking care of him, and up to a point, Tony is happy and loved. But he always feels a little bereft, you know? But then he sees other families interact, and even other posh, elitist families work a tiny little bit different than his. And I think at that point Tony realises that he WANTS that something from his parents and even then, I don't think Tony knows what exactly he wants.  
> And also I thought Tony just didn't grow as attached to Maria because, despite she is as brilliant as everyone (in this fic and in others) think, it just so happened that Tony was caught more by Howard's face than Maria's. I'm thinking it was just pure something of Howard's that Tony latched onto more than he could have of Maria's.  
> Either way, Jarvis trumps everyone because he is always there. I was a tiny bit worried that it may look a little bit underage at the end, but their love is familial, and I just don't know how to express just the extreme fondness of a guy just looking at this kid smiling and coming to him for a hug. I added the friendship thing at the last moment, just in case.


End file.
